Blogging the Class Writing Lab

1. Your keyword will be present in a topic sentence claim, but two different passages will provide support for it. AS YOU DRAFT, it's simply important that you have the keyword and that you make some (any) generic claims, such as: In Zeitoun cultural fears play a role in Zeitoun's experiences.

Note that this language WILL BE REVISED for the final draft, in part because the paper is asking us about the lessons Zeitoun might have for climate emergencies in New York's future. The language will then shift to: One of the lessons Zeitoun offers us is that climate emergencies something something cultural fear.

Note, too, that your critical thinking about the passage(s) in your key word will necessarily change, in part because you will be relating your discovering about Zeitoun to the lessons they might offer.

2. Remember that your reader will not accept transitions to your direct quote that use page numbers, such as "on page 33..." Do not use page numbers in your writing except in citations, like this ----> (Eggers 33). Where your instinct is to write "on page 33," that is where you summarize what's happening in the book for your reader. You then transition from this summary into your direct quotation.

3. Remember, keywords are 1-2 words that are ideas, such as "shock doctrine." They explain more than one thing  - more than one situation, time, event, etc. They also have to be specific enough to the text that the reader feels they work especially for the text in question (in our case, Zeitoun). They have to be accurate, creative, and yet also 'portable' - that is, other people, including your classmates, could use them.

4. Critical thinking in a paragraph with two quotes: perhaps you should approach like this:

claim - keyword
define keyword
introduce first passage (remind the reader what's happening in the part of the book from where you're pulling the quote)
direct quotation and citation
brief explanation of relation between quote and keyword
transition to second example of keyword
introduce second passage (same directions as introducing first passage)
direct quotation and citation
CRITICAL THINKING: compare and contrast how both moments demonstrate your keyword idea, but also make the clear each of the two examples show individually, or separately, about the text.
OTHER OPTIONS: After you've done this, you can relate these examples to your thesis as a whole. You can may thus relate these examples to their wider importance about what they teach us about climate change and disaster preparation.